People with persistent heartburn or acid reflux will be offered a ‘sponge-on-a-string’ test in dozens of pharmacies across England for the first time — as part of a new innovative pilot to help prevent oesophageal cancer.
NHS England has today announced that dozens of pharmacies in England will offer new ‘heartburn health checks’ to test for Barrett’s oesophagus, which can be a precursor to oesophageal cancer.
The test involves patients swallowing a small pill on a thread, which expands into a penny-sized sponge when it reaches the stomach. After a few minutes, it is safely pulled out to collect cells from the lining of the oesophagus, which are tested for pre-cancerous changes in the lab.
Delivered by a health professional in under 10 minutes, the test could help shift care from hospitals to the community as part of the 10-Year Health Plan, launched last week by the Government and NHS.
It is currently used in hospitals and Community Diagnostic Centres, helping reduce the need for invasive endoscopies and free up appointments for those at high risk of cancer – and the NHS will now pilot whether care could be made more convenient to help people get tested while they shop.
Pharmacists will help spot patients who are regularly using over-the-counter medications to ease their heartburn or reflux symptoms but haven’t come forward to their GP, aiming to spot early changes in the lining of the oesophagus that otherwise may have been missed.
